Congressional incumbent slings mud, dodges debate

Strap on some tall mukluks and get a bowl of popcorn; it's getting muddy but entertaining,as we slip into the final weeks of campaigning.

Strap on some tall mukluks and get a bowl of popcorn; it's getting muddy but entertaining,as we slip into the final weeks of campaigning.

Another mailing was sent out this week promoting Republican Rep. Tom Marino. The mailing, paid for by the Republican Federal Committee of Pennsylvania, is a departure from the previous, bland and uninformative mailers from Marino's camp in recent weeks.

This one is mean.

One side of the mailer shows Marino in his signature light blue oxford, which must have tested well with a focus group somewhere — he always wears it.

Marino and oxford are shown with red tie and with blue tie for that authoritative, patriotic look politicians need; and again, with no tie, for that approachable look.

There are some words, blah, blah, blah — same old rhetoric — Wall Street bailouts bad, cutting taxes good. You know the drill.

But flip this mailer over and it changes personality faster than a split ticket voter.

The subliminal message conveys that Scollo is an inept clown, and it links his name with the nasty slang nickname of his garb: wife beater.

As in, "Did you see that picture of Scollo in his wife beater?" A question that I heard several times this week.

The photo is from Scollo's Facebook page, the mailer says in sloppy font matching the mood of the unflattering image. Why have a picture like that online while running for office? Just dumb, I guess.

The mailer says Scollo has a checkered past and refers to his $44,000 tax debt, a story the Pocono Record broke earlier this month. But it doesn't mention Scollo's explanation that he got behind on his taxes when his wife battled breast cancer and her insurance coverage was denied. His income went to medical bills, and he is on a payment plan to pay the taxes back.

Probably in retaliation, the political blog Gort42 released a video of Marino, and his blue oxford, being ambushed at a public meet-and-greet, by a person who disagreed with Marino's positions.

Marino got a little hot under the blue oxford collar, and walked away. It was pretty unflattering.

Same blog shows an old video of Marino asking a heckler "What kind of welfare are you on?" Really slimy question. Who knows what the context was there.

A while back, the Pocono Record invited Marino to an editorial board interview where Scollo would have also been asked to appear at the same time.

Marino turned down the offer,.

"While we would like to meet with your editorial board to discuss the important issues that Congressman Marino has been tackling in Washington," Ryan wrote, "we do not have any other scheduled appearances with our opponent outside of a debate with WVIA on October 30."

So there will be just one real conversation. At the 11th hour. If you happen to catch it.

Voters may think they have to choose between the mean candidate and the dumb one.

But really, it is a choice between the slick and the slicker. With every election, it makes voters a little sicker.